Kindergarten, here we come!

Mike and I just registered Evan for Kindergarten this morning. I can't believe how fast the past 4 years have flown! She cannot wait to start school and will be so excited when I show her the headband and belt I bought her to match her uniforms. (We'll wait on buying the uniforms, though) Can anyone answer this question for me: why do we have to pay $10 each to join PTO? Aren't they asking for OUR help? If they are not going to pay us to volunteer, why should we have to pay THEM to let us volunteer? We walked out and mike said he could tell already he is not going to like the school always holding their hand out for money.

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

We have had so much rain lately. Last weekend Evan went out to play in some of the puddles. What child doesn't love playing in the rain and puddles? When we showed her the ducks sitting in a small pond in our backyard, she said "I must be dreaming! Look at those ducks!"

Artbreak

For the last 25 years (I think), the 2 school systems have put on a weeklong festival called Artbreak. There are performances from all kinds of choirs, symphonies, dance classes, comedy troups, poetry readings, etc. The part we attend is held in the Convention Center where there are a ton of stations set up for children to work on different art projects. The coolest part is that it is all free! Evan made a couple of necklaces, 2 paintings, a clay pinchpot, a hat, a Chinese lantern and a puppet - in less than 2 hours. We then had to have a dolphin painted on her face.

Look Who Got Her Ears Pierced!

I have always said that Evan could get her ears pierced when she was old enough to take care of them herself, and she has not had an interest in getting them pierced at all! Well, lately she has been toying with the idea. One day she's ready, the next day she's scared. Friday she decided she wanted to do it. We had a busy day (I'll post more later), so it was almost 9pm before we got to Claire's. She was very excited and doing very well until the guns came out. She cried for a few minutes but was very glad she did it. We bought a few pairs so she could dream of the day she would get to take her studs out. She told me this morning that although she has tried to dream about her new earrings, she hasn't been able to.

Alligator Farm

The Alligator Farm is a pretty cool place. It is in Natchitoches which is where Steel Magnolias was filmed. I was in high school and at band camp in Natchitoches when it was being filmed - yes, I know it is hard to believe I was a band geek! Anyway, if you have ever seen the movie, rest assured that this town has not changed any in the 20+ years since it was filmed. And yes, they do have the huge Christmas festival every year - just like in the movie. It is still a quaint, cool Southern town.

Not only does the Farm have alligators, but they also have a petting zoo. And if you get hungry, you can grab a bite to eat in the snack bar. How ironic to be able to watch alligators being fed, and then go to the snack bar to eat fried alligator on a stick! Here's a video of feeding time. (Tonya, thanks for sharing your pictures with me!)

Welcome, Wayne, Tonya & Melia!

Our friends Wayne, Tonya and Melia (14 months) stopped in for a visit last weekend. We had such a good time with them. Evan did not want to give up her room at first, but she changed her mind when she realized she would get to sleep in our room. Since they are from Utah, all they wanted to eat was crawfish. I made crawfush etoufee, we went out for crawfish ravioli at Copeland's, and then went to Shane's for boiled crawfish. I'm the only one in my family who likes crawfish, so it was a treat to have someone to eat it with (I do not, however, eat it boiled.) I had a fried alligator po-boy that was excellent instead of boiled crawfish.

Evan loved playing with Melia and has told me many times since they left how much she misses her. She was very good with Melia. It was cool to have a bit of a look into what kind of a sister she will be to Sydney - if Sydney ever makes it. I had to work Monday, so Mike took them to Natchitoches to the Alligator Farm. They all had a great time! I'll post these pics in my next post. On the wat to the farm, though, they stopped to save a turtle.

We Scored U2 Tickets!

I am so excited! My sister-in-law Jamie told me a few months ago about a website where you buy a subscription and get to buy tickets before they go on sale to the public. Well, this morning we scored some pretty good seats for U2 in October! We saw them in Houston during their last tour, and Keri & Jamie took us to the Skyroom (?) after the show to try to get a bite to eat. It was so crowded that we we left. We were all a little upset the next day when we found out that Bono showed up not long after we left. We just might camp out there this time. It's a Beautiful Day!

Happy Easter!

Evan has been looking forward to the day I would let her wear her Easter dress. She asks to try it on all the time, and then she'll just play in it until I make her take it off. It is so cute on her that I let her wear it almost as long as she wants.

Easter Egg Hunt #3

We had our Easter lunch with Grandma, Grandpa, MiMi, PaPa and Big Girl Saturday afternoon, and Evan had another hunt! She had to put her new bathing suit on to find them. It is so cute and the color looks great on her! We took turns hiding and then finding the eggs. Grandparents are always good sports, and Evan is always so excited to see them!

Easter Egg Hunt #2

This morning was the Easter egg hunt at church. She's been practicing since Thursday she had an Easter Egg Hunt at school, and she's been hiding them at home. I sent her to her room to get dressed, and she came out with one of her Easter dresses on (I couldn't decide which one to buy, so I bought them both). After the children found the eggs, they played some games. It was pretty funny watching her hop with a beanbag between her legs while wearing a dress.

A great Good Friday

Today was Mike's regular day off and I took the day off since the market was closed. Evan and I slept in a little and then we headed out for lunch and an afternoon of play. Since Mike only got about 2 hours of sleep, we let him go home for a nap while we went to Party Central. We played miniature golf and then Evan slid down the big slide nonstop for about 45 minutes! She loves that slide and will continue to make the circle (up the stairs, down the slide) as long as you will let her.

When we got home, we found an Edible Arrangement (instead of flowers, the arrangement is made out of fruit - canteloupe, honeydew, pineapple, grapes and strawberries)! I've always wanted one, and it was so worth the wait! The chocolate covered pineapple was fantastic! Thanks Tammi and Daniel! It made for a perfect dinner!

Danger-Proned Daphne

Evan has been so excited to color Easter eggs this year. I thought I was being so smart in leaving the dye on the counter while she was decorating at the table. Apparently we weren't watching closely enough when she came to check out Mike's creations. (He was putting bands around the eggs to make them striped.) She went in for a closer look, grabbed one of the bowls, and out came the dye ... all over the floor, one of the chairs and her! I guess we should have named her Daphne. Lucky for her we were able to get it all up! In fact, she was harder to clean up than anything else! After we got it cleaned up, she decided she would stamp one of her eggs. The sponge slipped and she ended up with a huge smudge. I hope this 'accident looking for a place to happen' phase is not a long one!